DSST Principles of Advanced English Composition study guide
DSST Principles of Advanced English Composition · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Principles of Advanced English Composition is a DSST exam listed in the Humanities category and recommended for 3 baccalaureate credits. DSST describes its content in three parts: elements of effective writing, reading and writing arguments, and using secondary sources. That makes it a natural fit for students who already write at the college level and want to demonstrate those skills on a single exam rather than sit through a first-year composition course. It is typically taken by undergraduates filling a general-education writing requirement, adult learners returning to school, and service members using DSST testing to accelerate a degree. Topics on this exam: Elements of effective writing, Reading and writing arguments, and Using secondary sources. The DSST Principles of Advanced English Composition study guide has 3 sections and about 1,340 words.
01Elements of Effective Writing
The Elements of Effective Writing domain tests sentence- and paragraph-level control: clarity, concision, coherence, tone, and correctness. Questions ask you to choose the best revision, identify the error, or predict how a change shifts emphasis. Prefer verbs to nominalizations: "make a decision" → "decide"; "conduct an analysis" → "analyze". Remove expletives ("there is," "it is") when a real subject exists.
439 words, about 2 min02Reading and Writing Arguments
Reading and Writing Arguments asks you to dissect arguments others make and build your own. Expect questions on thesis quality, Toulmin structure, rhetorical appeals, inductive and deductive reasoning, fallacies, and the effective use of counterargument. A thesis must be arguable, specific, and supportable: "Public universities should cap online course enrollment at 25 students" beats "Online learning has problems." The Toulmin model identifies a claim (what you assert), grounds (evidence), warrant (the assumption linking evidence to claim), backing (support for the warrant), qualifier ("usually," "in most cases"), and rebuttal (conditions under which the claim fails). Deduction moves from general premise to conclusion; an enthymeme is a syllogism with an unstated premise.
439 words, about 2 min03Using Secondary Sources
Using Secondary Sources tests how you find, evaluate, integrate, and document outside material. The exam favors source evaluation, plagiarism avoidance, the quotation/paraphrase/summary distinction, and citation mechanics in MLA and APA. Distinguish primary sources (raw data, original documents, literary texts) from secondary sources (analysis of primary material) and tertiary sources (encyclopedias, textbooks). Peer-reviewed scholarly articles carry more authority than popular magazines for academic claims; trade publications speak to practitioners.
462 words, about 2 min